Perhaps the best paragraph in the whole Lord of the Rings trilogy is when Frodo is honored with a song to celebrate his success in destroying the Ring of Doom.
And all the host laughed and wept, and in the midst of their merriment and tears the clear voice of the minstrel rose like silver and gold, and all men were hushed. And he sang to them…until their hearts, wounded with sweet words, overflowed, and their joy was like swords, and they passed in thought out to regions where pain and delight flow together and tears are the very wine of blessedness. (The Return of the King, 933)
Like those who listened to the minstrel’s song, we who see our Savior in the last day will also be made merry with the story of his victory. And we too will be hushed by and wounded with the sweet words that are sung of his self-sacrifice on our behalf.
We will have joy like swords—bright and piercing—and all of the pain and loss of Christ’s death (and our daily dying with him) will only mix with and enhance our bliss.
Friday, October 8, 2010
Good word to men...and women
This seen @Kevin DeYoung
The Spirituality of Taste
Posted: 07 Oct 2010 03:45 AM PDT
J.C. Ryle:
The man whose soul is “growing” takes more interest in spiritual things every year. He does not neglect his duty in the world. He discharges faithfully, diligently, and conscientiously every relation of life, whether at home or abroad. But the things he loves best are spiritual things. The ways, and fashions, and amusements, and recreations of the world have a continually decreasing place in his heart. He does not condemn them as downright sinful, nor say that those who have anything to do with them are going to hell. He only feels that they have a constantly diminishing hold on his own affections, and gradually seem smaller and more trifling in his eyes. Spiritual companions, spiritual occupations, spiritual conversation, appear of ever-increasing value to him. Would any one know if he is growing in grace? Then let him look within for increasing spirituality of taste. (Holiness, 107)
So I ask myself: Do I love Jesus a little more this year and football a little bit less? Do I love the word more and the world less? Do I love to long for spiritual things more and entertainment, politics, and hobbies less? Are the things that truly taste best tasting better to me?
The Spirituality of Taste
Posted: 07 Oct 2010 03:45 AM PDT
J.C. Ryle:
The man whose soul is “growing” takes more interest in spiritual things every year. He does not neglect his duty in the world. He discharges faithfully, diligently, and conscientiously every relation of life, whether at home or abroad. But the things he loves best are spiritual things. The ways, and fashions, and amusements, and recreations of the world have a continually decreasing place in his heart. He does not condemn them as downright sinful, nor say that those who have anything to do with them are going to hell. He only feels that they have a constantly diminishing hold on his own affections, and gradually seem smaller and more trifling in his eyes. Spiritual companions, spiritual occupations, spiritual conversation, appear of ever-increasing value to him. Would any one know if he is growing in grace? Then let him look within for increasing spirituality of taste. (Holiness, 107)
So I ask myself: Do I love Jesus a little more this year and football a little bit less? Do I love the word more and the world less? Do I love to long for spiritual things more and entertainment, politics, and hobbies less? Are the things that truly taste best tasting better to me?
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
All will be changed
Sobering words from Bishop J. C. Ryle (Practical Religion pg. 40):
A day is coming when banknotes will be as useless as rags, and gold will be as worthless as the dust of the earth. A day is coming when thousands will care nothing for the things for which they once lived, and will desire nothing so much as the things which they once despised. The mansions and palaces will be forgotten in the desire of a “house not made with hands.” The favor of the rich and great will be remembered no more, in the longing for the favor of the King of kings. The silks, and satins, and velvets, and laces, will be lost sight of in the anxious need of the robe of Christ’s righteousness. All will be altered, all will be changed in the great day of the Lord’s return.
Are you ready?
A day is coming when banknotes will be as useless as rags, and gold will be as worthless as the dust of the earth. A day is coming when thousands will care nothing for the things for which they once lived, and will desire nothing so much as the things which they once despised. The mansions and palaces will be forgotten in the desire of a “house not made with hands.” The favor of the rich and great will be remembered no more, in the longing for the favor of the King of kings. The silks, and satins, and velvets, and laces, will be lost sight of in the anxious need of the robe of Christ’s righteousness. All will be altered, all will be changed in the great day of the Lord’s return.
Are you ready?
Thirst for souls
“Leave your home, your comforts, your bed, your ease, your all, to feed lost souls. The Lord of glory left heaven for this; it is enough for the disciple to be as his Master. It is said of Alleine that ‘he was infinitely and insatiably greedy for the conversion of souls.’ . . . The Lord give you this heavenly compassion for this people. Do not be satisfied without conversion. . . . Remember that a moral sinner will lie down in the same hell with the vilest.”
Robert Murray M’Cheyne, Memoir and Remains (Edinburgh, 1987), page 406.
Robert Murray M’Cheyne, Memoir and Remains (Edinburgh, 1987), page 406.
The past
“Would you like to be rid of this spiritual depression? The first thing you have to do is to say farewell now once and forever to your past. Realize that it has been covered and blotted out in Christ. Never look back at your sins again. Say: ‘It is finished, it is covered by the blood of Christ.’ That is your first step. Take that and finish with yourself and all this talk about goodness, and look to the Lord Jesus Christ. It is only then that true happiness and joy are possible for you.”
Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Spiritual Depression (Grand Rapids, 1965), page 35.
Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Spiritual Depression (Grand Rapids, 1965), page 35.
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Idolatry Is Like a Pacifier
I just read this post by Justin Buzzard and thought it worthy of sharing.
The idolatry in our lives is like a pacifier problem I recently observed.
My friend has a 2-year-old son who is always sucking on his pacifier. Always. He sucks on his pacifier all day long. He sucks on his pacifier all night long. Two years of all-day and all-night pacifier sucking has caused a big problem: This toddler’s teeth have hinged forward and up like an old fashioned garage door because of the constant shape and suck of the pacifier.
A pacifier is a good thing. But a pacifier becomes a dangerous and idolatrous thing when we give it our ultimate allegiance–when we suck on it all day long, all night long, for two years. This pacifier has changed the structure and appearance of this little boy’s mouth, and now significant corrective action is required.
Job security, relationships, success, reputation, money, planning, and comfort are also good things. But these become dangerous and idolatrous things when we give them our ultimate allegiance–when these things become the central fixation of our lives rather than our Triune God. Like the pacifier, our constant suck of idolatry slowly but surely changes the deep structure and appearance of our hearts, leaving us in need of significant intervention.
My friend is a good father. He knows what he has to do now. He has to take away the pacifier from his son. With this son, cold turkey is the only method that will work. Daytime will be full of confused crankiness as the son cries out for his familiar pacifier, not understanding why his father withholds it. Nighttime will be the worst. The son has never slept without his pacifier. My friend the father will have to listen to the uncomfortable sounds of tears, restless exhaustion, and anger coming from his son’s crib. This will go on for many nights. It won’t be until many years later that the son understands why his father took away his cherished pacifier.
We all have our pacifiers. We’ve come to love them too much.
Much of this is our fault, our sin. Some of it is not. Had my friend been a more discerning father, he would’ve spotted and stopped his son’s pacifier problem earlier. But he didn’t, and his son’s inordinate love for the pacifier only grew stronger.
This is why the allure of idolatry is so strong in our lives. We attach our attention, affection, and assurance to created things rather than the Creator because of the sin in our own hearts and because of the many ways other people have sinned against us. There’s a double power at work here. When we were young, probably without even knowing it, many of us determined to never again experience the hurt and shame that came from the hands of another person. So we selected a pacifier of self-protection to carry with us at all times.
Some of us chose to not feel. Some chose to always be in control. Some chose to hide. Some chose to be religious. Some of us chose to run away.
Now we’ve grown older. And in rare moments of honesty we’re able to admit, or start to admit, that we have a problem. The pacifier that we thought would protect us and satisfy us, has only hurt us. It’s actually caused us to hurt other people too. This is what always happens when we let something be for us what only God can be for us.
Some of you hurt so badly right now. You hurt because your pacifier has been taken away. Like me, you don’t know how to do life without your pacifier.
But this is what I know about my Sovereign Father: he loves his kids. This never changes. All who repent of running their own life and trust Jesus as Savior have inherited an invincible love relationship with the Father.
And the reason the Father has ripped the pacifier from your clenched mouth is the same reason he chose you before the foundation of the world, justified you at your conversion, and will one day glorify you in his presence: because he loves you! Don’t just read these words, believe these words.
He loves you! He loves you! He loves you!
Child of God, you had a problem and you didn’t know it. You’ve been sucking on a pacifier for years and it’s been damaging you and damaging others. You’ve refused to give it up. Now God has arranged the circumstances of your life to decisively pull the pacifier from your grip. You’re shaken up, but he has you right where he wants you. The only way forward is to trust your Father. Trust him! Let him love you. Trust his plan. Trust him and love him with all your heart. New territory will open up before you
The idolatry in our lives is like a pacifier problem I recently observed.
My friend has a 2-year-old son who is always sucking on his pacifier. Always. He sucks on his pacifier all day long. He sucks on his pacifier all night long. Two years of all-day and all-night pacifier sucking has caused a big problem: This toddler’s teeth have hinged forward and up like an old fashioned garage door because of the constant shape and suck of the pacifier.
A pacifier is a good thing. But a pacifier becomes a dangerous and idolatrous thing when we give it our ultimate allegiance–when we suck on it all day long, all night long, for two years. This pacifier has changed the structure and appearance of this little boy’s mouth, and now significant corrective action is required.
Job security, relationships, success, reputation, money, planning, and comfort are also good things. But these become dangerous and idolatrous things when we give them our ultimate allegiance–when these things become the central fixation of our lives rather than our Triune God. Like the pacifier, our constant suck of idolatry slowly but surely changes the deep structure and appearance of our hearts, leaving us in need of significant intervention.
My friend is a good father. He knows what he has to do now. He has to take away the pacifier from his son. With this son, cold turkey is the only method that will work. Daytime will be full of confused crankiness as the son cries out for his familiar pacifier, not understanding why his father withholds it. Nighttime will be the worst. The son has never slept without his pacifier. My friend the father will have to listen to the uncomfortable sounds of tears, restless exhaustion, and anger coming from his son’s crib. This will go on for many nights. It won’t be until many years later that the son understands why his father took away his cherished pacifier.
We all have our pacifiers. We’ve come to love them too much.
Much of this is our fault, our sin. Some of it is not. Had my friend been a more discerning father, he would’ve spotted and stopped his son’s pacifier problem earlier. But he didn’t, and his son’s inordinate love for the pacifier only grew stronger.
This is why the allure of idolatry is so strong in our lives. We attach our attention, affection, and assurance to created things rather than the Creator because of the sin in our own hearts and because of the many ways other people have sinned against us. There’s a double power at work here. When we were young, probably without even knowing it, many of us determined to never again experience the hurt and shame that came from the hands of another person. So we selected a pacifier of self-protection to carry with us at all times.
Some of us chose to not feel. Some chose to always be in control. Some chose to hide. Some chose to be religious. Some of us chose to run away.
Now we’ve grown older. And in rare moments of honesty we’re able to admit, or start to admit, that we have a problem. The pacifier that we thought would protect us and satisfy us, has only hurt us. It’s actually caused us to hurt other people too. This is what always happens when we let something be for us what only God can be for us.
Some of you hurt so badly right now. You hurt because your pacifier has been taken away. Like me, you don’t know how to do life without your pacifier.
But this is what I know about my Sovereign Father: he loves his kids. This never changes. All who repent of running their own life and trust Jesus as Savior have inherited an invincible love relationship with the Father.
And the reason the Father has ripped the pacifier from your clenched mouth is the same reason he chose you before the foundation of the world, justified you at your conversion, and will one day glorify you in his presence: because he loves you! Don’t just read these words, believe these words.
He loves you! He loves you! He loves you!
Child of God, you had a problem and you didn’t know it. You’ve been sucking on a pacifier for years and it’s been damaging you and damaging others. You’ve refused to give it up. Now God has arranged the circumstances of your life to decisively pull the pacifier from your grip. You’re shaken up, but he has you right where he wants you. The only way forward is to trust your Father. Trust him! Let him love you. Trust his plan. Trust him and love him with all your heart. New territory will open up before you
Monday, October 4, 2010
Piper on criticizing Fundamentalists
I found this blogpost from John Piper and thought it worth sharing. It is no secret that I believe moralism-legalism-fundamentalism is perhaps the greatest danger among conservative brothers/congregations in our day. I still believe that the error in this sort of thinking is convincing some who are unregenerate that they are indeed Christ-followers and confusing moral behavior and the gospel. But at the same time I have a great many friends who have fundamentalist leanings and I love them dearly. I think Piper has a good word for those of us who see the danger but love our brothers.
20 Reasons I Don't Take Potshots at Fundamentalists
June 2, 2008 | by: John Piper |
1. They are humble and respectful and courteous and even funny (the ones I've met).
2. They believe in truth.
3. They believe that truth really matters.
4. They believe that the Bible is true, all of it.
5. They know that the Bible calls for some kind of separation from the world.
6. They have backbone and are not prone to compromise principle.
7. They put obedience to Jesus above the approval of man (even though they fall short, like others).
8. They believe in hell and are loving enough to warn people about it.
9. They believe in heaven and sing about how good it will be to go there.
10. Their "social action" is helping the person next door (like Jesus), which doesn't usually get written up in the newspaper.
11. They tend to raise law-abiding, chaste children, in spite of the fact that Barna says evangelical kids in general don't have any better track record than non-Christians.
12. They resist trendiness.
13. They don’t think too much is gained by sounding hip.
14. They may not be hip, but they don’t go so far as to drive buggies or insist on typewriters.
15. They still sing hymns.
16. They are not breathless about being accepted in the scholarly guild.
17. They give some contemporary plausibility to New Testament claim that the church is the “pillar and bulwark of the truth.”
18. They are good for the rest of evangelicals because of all this.
19. My dad was one.
20. Everybody to my left thinks I am one. And there are a lot of people to my left.
20 Reasons I Don't Take Potshots at Fundamentalists
June 2, 2008 | by: John Piper |
1. They are humble and respectful and courteous and even funny (the ones I've met).
2. They believe in truth.
3. They believe that truth really matters.
4. They believe that the Bible is true, all of it.
5. They know that the Bible calls for some kind of separation from the world.
6. They have backbone and are not prone to compromise principle.
7. They put obedience to Jesus above the approval of man (even though they fall short, like others).
8. They believe in hell and are loving enough to warn people about it.
9. They believe in heaven and sing about how good it will be to go there.
10. Their "social action" is helping the person next door (like Jesus), which doesn't usually get written up in the newspaper.
11. They tend to raise law-abiding, chaste children, in spite of the fact that Barna says evangelical kids in general don't have any better track record than non-Christians.
12. They resist trendiness.
13. They don’t think too much is gained by sounding hip.
14. They may not be hip, but they don’t go so far as to drive buggies or insist on typewriters.
15. They still sing hymns.
16. They are not breathless about being accepted in the scholarly guild.
17. They give some contemporary plausibility to New Testament claim that the church is the “pillar and bulwark of the truth.”
18. They are good for the rest of evangelicals because of all this.
19. My dad was one.
20. Everybody to my left thinks I am one. And there are a lot of people to my left.
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